Denis O'Donovan (born 23 July 1955) is an Irish

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil (, ; meaning 'Soldiers of Destiny' or 'Warriors of Fál'), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party ( ga, audio=ga-Fianna Fáil.ogg, Fianna Fáil – An Páirtí Poblachtánach), is a conservative and Christia ...

politician who served as a

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

for the

Agricultural Panel The Agricultural Panel () is one of five vocational panels which together elect 43 of the 60 members of Seanad Éireann, the upper house of the Oireachtas (the legislature of Ireland). The Agricultural Panel elects eleven senators. Election Art ...

since April 2011. He previously served as

Cathaoirleach Cathaoirleach (; Irish for chairperson; plural: ) is the title of the chair (or presiding officer) of Seanad Éireann, the sixty-member upper house of the Oireachtas, the legislature of Ireland. The current Cathaoirleach, who has held the o ...

Seanad Éireann Seanad Éireann (, ; "Senate of Ireland") is the upper house of the Oireachtas (the Irish legislature), which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann (the lower house). It is commonly called the Seanad or Senate and its memb ...

from 2016 to 2020 and Leas-Chathaoirleach of

from 2011 to 2016. He served as a

Teachta Dála A Teachta Dála ( , ; plural ), abbreviated as TD (plural ''TDanna'' in Irish, TDs in English), is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas (the Irish Parliament). It is the equivalent of terms such as ''Member of Parl ...

(TD) for the Cork South-West constituency from 2002 to 2007. A native of

Bantry Bantry () is a town in the civil parish of Kilmocomoge in the barony of Bantry on the southwest coast of County Cork, Ireland. It lies in West Cork at the head of Bantry Bay, a deep-water gulf extending for to the west. The Beara Peninsula ...

County Cork County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns a ...

, he was elected to

Cork County Council Cork County Council ( ga, Comhairle Contae Chorcaí) is the authority responsible for local government in County Cork, Ireland. As a county council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. The council is responsible for housing and ...

in 1985, and re-elected in 1991 and 1999. He was nominated by the Taoiseach to the Seanad in 1989. He was an unsuccessful candidate at the 1993 Seanad election but was elected to the Seanad in 1997 as a Senator for the

Industrial and Commercial Panel The Industrial and Commercial Panel ( ga, An Rolla Tionscail Agus Tráchtála) is one of five vocational panels which together elect 43 of the 60 members of Seanad Éireann, the upper house of the Oireachtas (the legislature of Ireland). The Ind ...

. O'Donovan was elected to

Dáil Éireann Dáil Éireann ( , ; ) is the lower house, and principal chamber, of the Oireachtas (Irish legislature), which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann (the upper house).Article 15.1.2º of the Constitution of Ireland rea ...

, on his fifth attempt, at the 2002 general election for the Cork South-West constituency. He lost his Dáil seat at the 2007 general election, however, he was subsequently elected to the Seanad. O'Donovan was the Chairman of the all-party

Oireachtas The Oireachtas (, ), sometimes referred to as Oireachtas Éireann, is the bicameral parliament of Ireland. The Oireachtas consists of: *The President of Ireland *The two houses of the Oireachtas ( ga, Tithe an Oireachtais): ** Dáil Éireann ...

Committee on the

Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these pr ...

, established in December 2002 to review the Constitution. He has a degree in law from

University College Cork University College Cork – National University of Ireland, Cork (UCC) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile Corcaigh) is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland, and located in Cork. The university was founded in 1845 as one o ...

and is a qualified solicitor. In June 2010, he lost the Fianna Fáil parliamentary

party whip A whip is an official of a political party whose task is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. This means ensuring that members of the party vote according to the party platform, rather than according to their own individual ideolog ...

when he failed to support the government on the Dog Breeding Establishment bill. He was a Fianna Fáil candidate at the 2011 general election for Cork South-West but was not elected. He was re-elected to the Seanad in April 2011. He was Leas-Chathaoirleach (Deputy Chairman) of the

24th Seanad This is a list of the members of the 24th Seanad Éireann, the upper house of the Oireachtas (legislature) of Ireland. These Senators were elected on 27 April 2011 after postal voting closed. The Taoiseach's nominees were announced on 20 May 20 ...

. He was re-elected again to

on the

in April 2016 and again in April 2020. He served as

from 8 June 2016 until 29 June 2020.

References

External links

Denis O'Donovan's page on the Fianna Fáil website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Odonovan, Denis 1955 births Alumni of University College Cork Cathaoirligh of Seanad Éireann Fianna Fáil TDs Irish solicitors Living people Local councillors in County Cork Members of the 19th Seanad Members of the 21st Seanad Members of the 23rd Seanad Members of the 24th Seanad Members of the 25th Seanad Members of the 26th Seanad Members of the 29th Dáil People from Bantry Politicians from County Cork Nominated members of Seanad Éireann Fianna Fáil senators